Puja or Pooja (IAST: pūjā; Devanagari: पूजा; IPA: [puːd͡ʒɑː]; is a prayer rituaw performed by Hindus of devotionaw worship to one or more deities, or to host and honor a guest, or one to spirituawwy cewebrate an event.[1][2] It may honour or cewebrate de presence of speciaw guest(s), or deir memories after dey die. The word "pūjā" is Sanskrit, and means reverence, honour, homage, adoration, and worship.[3] Puja, de woving offering of wight, fwowers, and water or food to de divine, is de essentiaw rituaw of Hinduism. For de worshipper, de divine is visibwe in de image, and de divinity sees de worshipper. The interaction between human and deity, between human and guru, is cawwed darshan, seeing. [4].

Puja rituaws are awso hewd by Buddhists and Jains. In Hindu, puja is done on a variety of occasions, freqwency and settings. It may incwude daiwy puja done in de home, to occasionaw tempwe ceremonies and annuaw festivaws. In oder cases, puja is hewd to mark a few wifetime events such as birf of a baby or a wedding, or to begin a new venture.[5] The two main areas where puja is performed are in de home and at tempwes to mark certain stages of wife, events or some festivaws such as Durga Puja and Lakshmi Puja.[6] Puja is not mandatory in Hinduism. It may be a routine daiwy affair for some Hindus, periodic rituaw for some, and rare for oder Hindus. In some tempwes, various pujas may be performed daiwy at various times of de day; in oder tempwes, it may be occasionaw.[7][8]

Puja varies according to de schoow of Hinduism. Puja may vary by region, occasion, deity honored, and steps fowwowed.[6][7] In formaw Nigama ceremonies, a fire may be wit in honour of deity Agni, widout an idow or image present. In contrast, in Agama ceremonies, an idow or icon or image of deity is present. In bof ceremonies, a wamp (diya) or incense stick may be wit whiwe a prayer is chanted or hymn is sung. Puja is typicawwy performed by a Hindu worshiper awone, dough sometimes in presence of a priest who is weww versed in a compwex rituaw and hymns. In tempwes and priest-assisted event puja, food, fruits and sweets may be incwuded as sacrificiaw offerings to de ceremony or deity, which, after de prayers, becomes prasad – food shared by aww gadered.[7][8]

Bof Nigama and Agama puja are practiced in Hinduism in India. In Hinduism of Bawi Indonesia, Agama puja is most prevawent bof inside homes and in tempwes. Puja is sometimes cawwed Sembahyang in Indonesia.[9][10]

Puspa-patra (Bengawi:পুষ্পপাত্র), important and essentiaw utensiws of worshipping, usuawwy made wif copper

Puja has uncwear origins.[11]J. A. B. van Buitenen states dat "puja" emerged from yajna rituaws, winking it to de Pravargya Vedic rite. The Rigveda in hymn 8.17 uses de word "Sachipujanayam" (शाचिपूजनायं) in de twewff verse, where it is an epidet for god Indra in a context of vocative singuwar "praise". The ancient schowar and Vedic text commentator Sayana expwains de term as a form of "praise, worship, invocation". The Grhyasutras use puj in de context of rites, as does Sanskrit schowar Panini. However, none of dese texts impwy puja as a form of devotionaw prayer worship.[12]

Kosha Kushi (Bengawi: কোশা-কুশী) (Doubwe Spoon) is use for puja. This Kosha Kushi is made of pure copper. Kosha Kushi is used for offer howy water to God and Goddess and awso used for shradh tarpan puja. Kosha Kushi is an important rituaw item used in de Tantric worship of de Divine Moder.

According to Natawia Lidova, puja is unwikewy to be of Indo-Aryan and Vedic origin because it wacks a Sanskrit root and it awso wacks cognate parawwews in oder Indo-European wanguages. Its root are probabwy Dravidian in origin, but de evidence for dis awternative hypodesis is awso wargewy missing possibwy because devotionaw worship is not as ancient as Hinduism.[12][13] Cowwins states dat de roots may be "Pu" (fwower) and "ge" (make), or a form of "making fwower sacrifice". However, dis proposaw is probwematic because "Pu" comes from an Indo-European root, whiwe "ge" from Dravidian, uh-hah-hah-hah.[12] Charpentier suggests[14] de origin of de word Puja may wie in de Dravidian wanguages. Two possibwe Tamiw roots have been suggested: Poosai "to smear wif someding" and Poochei(பூசெய்) "to do wif fwowers".[15]

According to schowars,[16] one of de earwiest mentions of pūjā is in de Grihya Sutras, which provide ruwes for domestic rites. These Sutras, dated to be about 500 BC, use de term puja to describe de hospitawity to honor priests who were invited to one’s home to wead rituaws for departed ancestors. As wif vedic times, de generaw concept of puja remained de same, but expanded to wewcoming de deity awong wif de deity's spirituaw essence as one's honored guest.[16] The Puranic corpus of witerature, dating from about 6f century CE, contain extensive outwine on how to perform deity puja (deva pūjā). Deity puja dus mewds Vedic rites wif devotion to deity in its rituaw form. As wif many oders aspects of Hinduism, bof Vedic puja and devotionaw deity puja continued, de choice weft to de Hindu.

As a historicaw practice, pūjā in Hinduism, has been modewed around de idea of hosting a deity, or important person, as an honored and dearest guest in de best way one can, given one's resources, and receiving deir happiness and bwessing in return, uh-hah-hah-hah. Pauw Thieme suggests from passages in de Rāmāyaṇa dat de word pūjā referred to de hospitabwe reception of guests and dat de dings offered to guests couwd be offered to de gods and deir dwewwings.[17] The rituaws in qwestion were de "five great sacrifices" or pañcamahāyajña recorded in de Gṛhyasūtra texts (for dis witerature, see Kawpa).[18] The devewopment of pūjā dus emerged from Vedic domestic traditions and was carried into de tempwe environment by anawogy: just as important guests had wong been wewcomed in weww-to-do homes and offered dings dat pweased dem, so too were de gods wewcomed in tempwe-homes and offered dings dat pweased dem. Copper-pwate charters recording grants of wands to tempwes show dat dis rewigious practice was activewy encouraged from de mid-4f century.[19][20]

In de earwiest texts describing Vedic puja, de significance of puja was to host de priest so dat he couwd make direct reqwests to de gods. An exampwe petition prayer made during a Vedic puja, according to Wade Wheewock,[21] is:

Indra-Agni, swayers of Vrtra wif de beautifuw dunderbowt, prosper us wif new gifts;O Indra, bring treasures wif your right hand;O Agni grant de enjoyments of a good househowd;Give (us) vigor, weawf in cattwe, and possession of good horses.
– ÄsvSü

In contrast to Vedic pujas, de significance of deity pujas shifted from petitions and externaw goaws to de experience of oneness wif de deities and deir spirituaw essence. It became a form of Yoga whose finaw resuwt aimed to be de consciousness of god drough homage to god. Neverdewess, even wif dis evowved deoreticaw spirituaw significance, for many peopwe, puja continued to be a vehicwe to petition desires and appeaws, such as for good heawf of one's chiwd, speedy recovery from iwwness, success in venture envisioned or such. In de structure and practice of puja, de mantras and rituaws focus on spirituawity, and any petitions and appeaws are tacked onwy to de end of de puja.[21]

Zimmer[22] rewates puja to yantras, wif de rituaws hewping de devotee focus on de spirituaw concepts. Puja in Hinduism, cwaims Zimmer, is a paf and process of transformation of consciousness, where de devotee and de spirituaw significance of de deity are brought togeder. This rituaw puja process, in different parts of India, is considered to be wiberating, reweasing, purifying and a form of Yoga of spirit and emotions.[23][24]

Puja in Hinduism sometimes invowves demes beyond idows or images. Even persons, pwaces, rivers, concrete objects or anyding is seen as manifestations of divine reawity by some Hindus. The access to de divine is not wimited to renunciatory meditation as in yoga schoow of Hinduism or idows in bhakti schoow. For some de divine is everywhere, widout wimit to its form, and a puja to dese manifestations signifies de same spirituaw meaning to dose who choose to offer a prayer to persons, pwaces, rivers, concrete objects or anyding ewse.[25][26]

Tempwe (Mandir) pūjā is more ewaborate dan de domestic versions and typicawwy done severaw times a day. They are awso performed by a tempwe priest, or pujari. In addition, de tempwe deity (patron god or goddess) is considered a resident rader dan a guest, so de puja is modified to refwect dat; for exampwe de deity is "awakened" rader dan "invoked" in de morning. Tempwe pujas vary widewy from region to region and for different sects, wif devotionaw hymns sung at Vaishnava tempwes for exampwe. At a tempwe puja, dere is often wess active participation, wif de priest acting on behawf of oders.[5]

A fuww home or tempwe puja can incwude severaw traditionaw upacaras or "attendances". The fowwowing is an exampwe puja; dese steps may vary according to region, tradition, setting, or time particuwarwy in ways de deity is hosted. In dis exampwe, de deity is invited as a guest, de devotee hosts and takes care of de deity as an honored guest, hymns and food are offered to de deity, after an expression of wove and respect de host takes weave and wif affection expresses good bye to de deity.[5]IndowogistJan Gonda has identified 16 steps (shodasha upachara) dat are common in aww varieties of puja:[28]

Avahana (“invocation”). The deity is invited to de ceremony from de heart.

A qwick puja has de same structure as acts ordinary peopwe wouwd perform for a qwick reception, hospitawity and affectionate interaction wif a bewoved guest. First de deity is greeted, acknowwedged by name and wewcomed, sometimes wif a diya or wighted incense stick. The devotee proceeds to connect wif de spirituaw manifestation by meditating (a form of darshan), or chanting hymns and mantras, den personaw prayers fowwow. After prayer is finished, de spirituaw visitor as guest is affectionatewy danked and greeted goodbye.[25] A qwick meditative puja is sometimes offered by some Hindus widout an idow or image. According to Chris Fuwwer, an andropowogist, Hindu texts awwow fwexibiwity and abbreviated puja according to occasion, needs and personaw preferences.[31]

In Hinduism of Bawi Indonesia, puja is sometimes cawwed Sembahyang.[10][32] The word originates from two words in owd Javanese: sembah and hyang. Sembah means to respect and bow down; Hyang means divine, God or Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa, howy man, and ancestors. So to pray means to respect, bow down, surrender to de divine and ancestors.

Sembahyang (Puja) is an obwigation for Bawinese Hindus, de prayers and hymns are derived from de Vedas. A famiwy typicawwy offers prayers every day, wif Kewangen and oder offerings. Kewangen means aromatic, and it is made from weaves and fwowers in form of auspicious Vedic symbows. Bawinese use kewangen to worship de divine, bof in form of Purusha (souw) and Pradana (body). As wif India, Bawinese make offerings, incwuding symbowic incwusion of fire, incense and mantras.[32][33]

In de case of great spirituaw masters, dere is awso a custom to perform puja for a wiving person, uh-hah-hah-hah. Gurus are sometimes chosen as objects of puja and honored as wiving gods or seen as de embodiment of specific deities. Gurus are sometimes adorned wif symbowic cwodes, garwands and oder ornaments, and cewebrated wif incense, washing and anointing deir feet, giving dem fruits, food and drinks and meditating at deir feet, asking for deir bwessing.

As wif church services in Christianity, Pūjā in Hinduism has served as a means for Hindu communities outside India to gader, sociawize, discover new friends and sometimes discuss ways to address sociaw discrimination of Hindus.[34][35][36] For exampwe, Marion O'Cawwaghan reports[37] dat de Hindu diaspora brought as indentured waborers to Trinidad by de British cowoniaw government, suffered discriminatory waws dat did not recognize traditionaw Hindu marriages or inheritance rights of chiwdren from a traditionaw Hindu marriage, nor did de non-Hindu majority government awwow pyre cremation or construction of crematorium. These Hindu rituaws were considered pagan and unciviwized. Pujas offered a way for Hindus to meet, sociawwy organize and petition deir human rights. Over time, pujas became as much as sociaw and community recreationaw event, as a rewigious event.[37]

Awdough pūjā is accepted as a vawid rewigious activity by Hindus at warge, it has wong been criticised by Mīmāṃsā dinkers. The foundationaw work of dis schoow is de Karmamīmāṃsāsūtra or "Aphorisms for Enqwiry into de Act," composed by Jaimini. The earwiest surviving commentary is by Śabara who wived around de end of de fourf century.[38] Śabara's commentary, known as Śabarabhāṣya howds pride of pwace in Mīmāṃsā in dat Sabara's understanding is taken as definitive by aww water writers. In his chapter entitwed Devatādikaraṇa (9: 1: 5: 6–9), Śabara examines de popuwar understanding of de gods and attempts to refute de bewief dat dey have materiaw bodies, are abwe to eat de offerings made to dem, and are capabwe of being pweased and so abwe to reward worshippers.[39] Basing himsewf on de Vedas (he refused to accept de Mahābhārata, Purāṇa texts or even de Smṛti witeratures as vawid sources of audority), Śabara concwudes dat de gods are neider corporeaw nor sentient and dus unabwe to enjoy offerings or own property. For dis he appeaws to empiricaw observation, noting dat offerings do not decrease in size when given to de gods; any decrease is simpwy due to exposure to de air. Likewise he argues dat substances are offered to gods not according to de wishes of de gods, but dat "what is vouched for by direct perception is dat de dings are used according to de wishes of de tempwe servants (pratyakṣāt pramāṇāt devatāparicārakāṇām abhiprāyaḥ).[40] In de course of his discussion, Śabara's asserts dat "dere is no rewation between de case of guests and de sacrificiaw act." This incidentaw remark provides sound historicaw proof dat pūjā was buiwt on anawogy wif atidi, de ancient Vedic tradition of wewcoming guests. What Śabara is maintaining is dat dis anawogy is not vawid.[41] Whiwe de Mīmāṃsakas continued to maintain dis interpretation for centuries, deir defeat in debate at de hands of Śaṅkarācārya wed to deirs being a minority view. It is a remarkabwe testament to de pwurawity and towerance of Indian civiwization dat Mīmāṃsakas fwourished even into de 17f century, as evidenced by de commentaries of Nīwakaṇṭha.

^G. Bühnemann, Pūjā: A Study of Smarta Rituaw (Vienna, 1988): p. 33; Shingo Einoo, "The Formation of de Pūjā Ceremony," Studien zur Indowogie und Iranistik (Festschrift für Pauw Thieme) 20 (1996): 74. A different view is found in Smif, Vedic Sacrifice in Transition, pp. 2–5, who attributes de decwine of owd śrauta practices to a number of factors one of which was de emergence of ‘iconic rituaw’.